Carrying the Snowball
by hollowcaverns
Summary: A blizzard shuts down the circulation centers for the day so Dollface and the others decide to have a little fun in the snow, despite Kloppman's wishes. When fun and games with the Brooklyn newsies goes wrong, the newsies are too determined to keep secrets from Kloppman. But when things get really serious, which will they value more, their health and friendships or their dignity?
1. Chapter 1

Dollface awoke one cold morning in December, shivering under her thinning blanket. The air felt much colder than it had the previous night, which meant one thing. She suddenly felt wide awake as she jumped out of bed and scrambled over to the window. Outside, the city had been coated with a fresh blanket of snow. She pumped her fist in the air excitedly. True, snow and cold weather meant harsher conditions for the newsies, not to mention there weren't as many people out and about to buy papers. But Dollface had always loved the snow. It was so beautiful, covering up the ugliness of the city. It had also provided a form of comfort for Crutchie and her as children; when their father beat them, they would go outside and press a handful of snow to soothe their bruises.

Dollface took one last look out the window and then ran over to her dresser. She pulled open the drawer where she and Crutchie kept their few belongings, such as their clothes, a picture of their mother, and the coats that Dollface stole from her father when they left him at twelve years old. She made lots of noise rifling through her clothing trying to pull out as many layers and warm clothes as possible. So it was no shocker when Crutchie awoke, his bed being right next to the draw.

"You crazy or somethin?" he grumbled, wiping the tiredness from his eyes. "Go back to sleep."

"Crutch, it's snowed last night," she said excitedly. Just like Dollface, the mere thought of snow woke him up and he grinned broadly. He pushed his blanket off of him and grabbed his crutch, hobbling quickly to the window. He pressed his hands to the cool glass as he looked outside.

"Geez, they sure didn't predict this one," he said as Dollface resumed her search for warm clothing. "Think it'll be in the papes this mornin?"

"Why would it?" she asked. "People don't gotta buy a pape to see it a snowed. All they gots to do is look out the window."

"Would yous two shut it?" a sleepy Racetrack shouted from across the room. "Some of us still wants our sleep."

"Well yous gonna need it for today," Crutchie said, turning away from the window."It snowed bout two feet." Racetrack groaned and hit his fist on the mattress.

"We just can't get a break, can we?" he complained, sitting up and letting his feet dangle over the edge of his bed.

"Hey maybe we finish sellin papes early and then we's can enjoy ourselves in the snow," Dollface said optimistically. She closed the drawer, having found all the clothes she was looking for. Racetrack rolled his eyes.

"I forgots," he said, hopping down from bed, shivering as his bare feet touched the freezing floor. "Yous two are snow freaks or somethin, ain't ya?" He made his way towards the bathroom just as Kloppman entered the room to wake up the boys.

"Well I'm not surprised to see you two up," he smiled, seeing Dollface and Crutchie up and about. "I know you two can't wait to get out there today but I'm sure the others won't be so thrilled."

"Oh trust us," Crutchie said, walking towards the lamp in the room. "Racetrack's already let us know how he feels." He turned the lamp on, flooding the dark room with light. Some of the boys groaned as the sudden light awoke them. Others didn't wake until Kloppman's booming voice filled the room.

"Alright boys, it snowed about two feet last night so it's not going to be a fun day," he said, walking around to wake the boys who still were not stirring from their sleep. "But just go out, do what you can, and come back here when you've had enough. Share some clothes and make sure everyone has enough on so none of you freeze to death today, alright? And come back soon as you're done, I don't want you fellas goofing around in this. All this ice and snow is a good way to get hurt or sick."

"Come on, Kloppman," Dollface whined. "A few snowballs ain't gonna hurt nobody."

"Just listen to him, Doll," Jack said, as he sleepily walked past her on the way to the bathroom. "We can't afford to get hurt or nothin. Just sell a few papes and get back here."

"Yous all big babies," Crutchie said, hobbling toward the pile of clothes Dollface had set on his bed. "If the crip says yous babies, the yous babies."

"I don't care what the crip says, the crip will be home once he's done selling papers," Kloppman said sternly, giving the siblings an authoritative look that told them to stop joking around. "The crip's sister too. Understood?"

"Yessir," they mumbled sadly. He nodded, satisfied with their answer, and left the room. The boys spent longer than usual getting ready that morning. They dressed in as many layers as possible and gave any extra clothes to some of the boys who didn't have many clothes to bundle up in. After about fifteen minutes, they were all ready to leave, thoroughly glum about the weather of the day. They waved goodbye to Kloppman at the door, grabbing bread off the table, and walking out into the wintry day.

The moment Dollface got outside, she stopped and spun around, breathing in the crisp air. It was perfect. There wasn't any bitter wind and it had stopped snowing an hour ago. All she had to do was enjoy the snow that surrounded her. She couldn't wait to get to Brooklyn. She was sure that Spot and his Brooklyn blood would want to go have an adventure in the snowy city.

Suddenly she felt a cold, stinging pain on the side of her face. She put her hand to her cheek and brushed off the snow that had just been thrown at her. She spun around and saw Crutchie laughing. She swooped down and scooped up a handful of snow and packed it into a ball. Crutchie ducked as she threw it towards him but not in enough time. It hit him clean in the face.

"It's on!" he shouted as Dollface laughed at him. They began throwing more snowballs at each other, dodging them for the most part, though occasionally getting hit.

"Would you two grow up?" Dollface and Crutchie froze, both of their arms raised and ready to throw another snowball. Kloppman was standing in the doorway that had previously been closed. He was frowning at both of them, causing them to drop their snowballs in the snow.

"I told you, no fooling around," he said crossly. "It is far too easy to catch something in weather like this. Now both of you promised to come home when you were done selling papers and I expect you do so."

"We's sorry, sir," Crutchie said guiltily. "We'll get goin now." Kloppman said nothing as the twins began trekking through the snow after their friends who had long ago left them to play in the snow but they soon caught up with the group.

"Kloppman do you in for goofing off?" Mush asked, seeing their dejected and slightly guilty faces. They nodded.

"Don't know what's so bad about it all though," Dollface said, shoving her cold fingers in her pockets. "It's just some frozen water that fell from the sky." The group walked in silence the rest of the way to the circulation center, all of them now in bad moods, either because of or despite the snow. Their moods were not to be improved. When at last they reached the circulation center, they were only greeted by the Delanceys standing behind the closed gates.

"Closed for today boys," Morris informed them. "Snow prevented all the papes from being distributed to their respective centers." The boys groaned, having trudged four blocks in the snow just to be turned away.

"Shit," Kid Blink mumbled. "Now how's we supposed to make money for the day?"

"Shoulda thought of that before ya became no good newsies," Morris sneered. Oscar laughed along with his brother.

"Although, if you's lookin for a little extra money, Dollface," Oscar said to her, a perverted smirk on his face, "My bed is _always_ open to you." Dollface clenched her fists, ready to punch the living daylights out of Oscar, even through the gate, when suddenly a snowball came hurling at Oscar's face.

"Yous a disgustin piece of slime, Delancey," Jack said roughly.

"Hey we was just bein courteous towards her in this difficult time," Morris said. "We know what a thrill she must be in bed though. Afta all she's bangin a Brooklyn, that's gotta be crazy!" The Delanceys were bombarded with snowballs, thrown by all of the now angry newsies. The Delanceys shielded themselves and retreated back to the safety if the distribution office, where Wiesel was watching the whole thing. Crutchie ran to the gates, his crutch lying forgotten in the snow, and grabbed the bars, a look of pure anger on his face.

"Yeah you betta run!" he shouted after them. "Yous betta be glad this gates between us othawise I'd shove my crutch down ya rotten throats!"

"Crutch, calm down, they's gone," Jack said, prying him off the gates. Dollface handed him his crutch, and he took it, looking down, his anger quickly fading and slightly embarrassed at his behavior.

"Sorry, didn't mean to act like that," he said, not looking at anyone. "They just make me so mad the way they treat you, Doll."

"Crutchie, it's ok, they's been doin shit like that since we was twelve," she said, trying to get him to look at her. "You know it don't botha me much."

"Yeah well it bothas me a lot," he grumbled. Dollface knew how much he hated the Delanceys. Ever since the strike, Crutchie had been filled with a strange mixture of loathing and fear towards them; loathing for attacking Dollface and fear for busting him up so badly. Add on that they threw in a blow to Dollface and Spot's relationship, which Crutchie still was unsure of, and Dollface could completely understand why he reacted the way he did.

"Well it's done now," Jack said, giving Crutchie a pat on the shoulder. "Now we just gotta figure out what to do. If _The World_ didn't get its papes to its center, then I doubt any otha pape did. Since we can't sell papes today, I guess we should just go back to the boardin house."

"Are you shitting me?" Dollface asked in disbelief. "Jack 'Cowboy' Kelly, leada of the newsboy strike, newsie extraordinaire, is just gonna let a perfectly good day go to waste and head inside cuz its a wee bit too cold?"

"Kloppman told us to come back-" Boots said but Dollface cut him off.

"And we will," she said, with a mischievous grin on her face, "Afta we play around in the snow. Come on, boys. The city's our playground. There ain't hardly nobody outside, Kloppman ain't expectin us til two at the earliest."

"Let's seize the day!" Crutchie said, his spirits suddenly higher at the prospect of spending a day in the snow.

"Davey's been rubbin off on ya," Specs said.

"Hey and we can go get Davey and Les too," Dollface said. "There ain't no way they's goin to school in this weatha."

"You's two is crazy," Racetrack said, rubbing his cold hands together. "It's already gettin cold. No way we's gonna be able to spend the rest of the day in this weather."

"It's only cold cuz we ain't movin around," Crutchie said. "Once we start running all ova, we's gonna warm up. Come on, we can play a game of capture the flag or have a snowball fight or something."

"Or we can go to the streets in Brooklyn," Dollface suggested. "Grab a tin trash lid and go sledding."

"Course you wanna go to Brooklyn," Buttons mumbled.

"Well it would be more fun with Spot's gang," Bumlets shrugged. It seemed Crutchie and Dollface had convinced some of the boys.

"We could have a snowball war with them," Skittery said excitedly. "Boy, imagine that!"

"Come on, Cowboy," Mush said, elbowing him in the arm. "Let's live a little!"

"Alright, let's go then," Jack said, rolling his eyes as the other boys cheered. "But we gotta be back around four so Kloppman don't suspect nothin."

"Well let's get goin then!" Dollface cheered as she led the group towards Brooklyn.

* * *

**not really sure if this is gonna be liked by everyone but I liked writing this story. This will probably only be five or six chapters, nothing major, just a fun easy read. Kind of a boring intro but it gets better :) review and comment please! **


	2. Chapter 2

They stopped by Davey and Les's house and convinced their mother to let them come spend the day in the snow. She too had reservations like Kloppman but eventually gave in, smiling as the boys ran off. Their journey took much longer than usual, not only because of the snow, but also because they would occasionally stop to throw snowballs at each other, make a snowman, or fall down in snow and make a snow angel. But when they finally reached Brooklyn, they found Spot's docks to be deserted. Not a single newsie could be found.

"Where else would he be, Doll?" Jack asked, looking around for anyone.

"Don't know," she shrugged. "He wouldn't be in his alley, not in this weatha. They all probably broke into some old buildin and spent the night there. That's what he told me they do when it's too cold or when it rains. They ain't sellin papes neitha othawise they'd be out on the streets."

"Fire!" The Brooklyn newsies popped up out of nowhere, surrounding the Manhattan newsies. They had been hiding in alleys, inside empty barrels, and behind crates and were suddenly running towards the other newsies, pelting snowballs at everyone.

"Retreat!" Jack shouted. He ran back towards the streets, pushing a way past the Brooklyn newsies as everyone else followed. Dollface swooped down and quickly made a snowball, turning around to throw it at the closest person, who just so happened to be Spot.

"Hey!" he shouted, wiping the snow off of his face. "What was that about?"

"All's fair in love and war!" Dollface shrugged, running to catch up with her friends. She laughed as Spot threw a snowball after her, which she quickly dodged. "Gonna have to do betta than that Conlon!" After the Manhattan newsies had retreated safely into a nearby alley, they all huddled together, out of breath and pink in the face from the cold.

"Alright, here's the gameplan," Jack said, crouching down to the ground. He drew a rough sketch of the immediate area with his finger in the snow. "Ok looks like they's got the docks taken care of, no way that's a safe zone for us. So we gotta stick to the alleys, got that? Now looks like Conlon's the leada of this little fight so we gotta get him to surrender."

"It'll take a lot to make Spot quit," Dollface remarked. "You think I'm stubborn? Just wait and see how long he'll go on."

"What if we take some of his team hostage?" Les asked.

"Yeah, if there's one thing Brooklyn does, it's stick up for each otha," Specs said. "No way Conlon will do this without his team."

"Good thinkin," Jack said, looking back down at the simple diagram he had made. He scratched his chin, contemplating a plan of action. "Ok here's what we'll do. Specs, Skittery, and Kid Blink will distract them, ya know, cause a diversion of some kind. While they's doin that, Bumlets and Swift, you's two is gonna sneak onto their docks and hide in those crates or something. When they ain't lookin, charge at them and chase 'em off the docks. That's when the rest of us will jump out and chase 'em into our territory. Then Spot'll be alone and we can go in for the kill."

"Or we could do this." They all spun around and saw the Brooklyn newsies standing at the end of the alley, all wielding snowballs.

"No fair!" Dollface shouted.

"All's fair in love and war, Doll," he smirked. "Attack!" They ran towards the Manhattan newsies as Jack ordered everyone to quickly make snowballs.

"Charge!" he shouted. The two groups ran towards each other as battle erupted. Snow was flying everywhere, hitting anything and everyone. People were falling all over, either tripping over each other or slipping in the snow. Dollface had just slipped on a patch of ice and was laughing when she heard footsteps crunching in the snow. She looked up to see a Brooklyn newsie named Kansas running after her, just about to throw a snowball right in her face. She crawled out of his path, scrambling to stand up, but the snowball did not hit her.

"Watch who you go afta!" Spot shouted, coming out of nowhere and pelting Kansas with two snowballs, one hitting his head and one hitting his back.

"Traitor!" Kansas shouted, pointing at Spot. All the Brooklyn newsies stopped what they were doing and ran towards Spot, circling him and throwing their snowballs at him. Dollface laughed as Spot tried, and failed, to shield himself from the hoard of snow that was being thrown at him.

"Alright! Alright! I give up!" he shouted, throwing his hands up in surrender. One last snowball was thrown, knocking him to the ground, and the Manhattan newsies laughed. Another Brooklyn newsie, Red, offered Spot his hand and helped his friend up.

"Now you know what happens to traitors," he shrugged. Spot laughed and bent over, picking up his cap and plopping it on his head.

"So now what do we do?" Spot asked, looking around.

"We could go sleddin," Crutchie suggested. "There's some pretty good streets here. Ya know, grab a trash can lid and sit on it. It'd be fun." The Brooklyn newsies shook their heads.

"Naw, there's a buncha cops on the look out for newsies makin trouble," one of them said. "They love to nab us on snow days. It's like they's watchin us or somethin."

"We could play capture the flag," Jack said. When everyone nodded in agreement, he looked around the alley for something to use as flags. He unwrapped the thin piece of fabric he called a scarf from his neck and snatched Dollface's cap off her head.

"Hey!" she shouted, trying to grab it from his hand. "I was usin that!"

"And now we's usin it. You was the one who wanted to play in the snow, the least you can do is contribute to the cause," Jack said, walking toward Spot. He held out both items in his hands and presented them to Spot. "Take your pick."

Spot looked at both items and chose Dollface's light brown cap as it was much less noticeable than Jack's red scarf. Jack nodded and bent down in the snow, drawing another rough diagram of the docks and alleys that they were occupying. He drew a line separating the two areas.

"You got the docks," Jack said, drawing an X on one side of the line. "We got the alleys." He drew a check mark and stood up.

"Now for the rules," Spot said, looking around at everyone. "We each get five minutes to hide the flag. Afta five minutes, it's fair game. The way you get out is by getting hit wit a snowball if you's in the otha team's boundaries. If you get hit, be an honest man-" Dollface raised an eyebrow at him.

"Or woman," he corrected himself, rolling his eyes. He bent down at Jacks diagram and circled two places in each boundary. "Those are the jails for each team. You get hit, you get takin there. The only way to get outta jail is if anotha team mate runs ova and tags the jail guard. If the jail guard is hit, then it's a jail break and everyone is freed. The jail guard don't hafta go to the otha team's jail but he does gotta let them go without firing on them. Everyone undastand?" Everyone nodded and he clapped his hands together excitedly.

"Let the games begin!" he shouted excitedly. Everyone cheered as the Manhattan newsies circled up and the Brooklyn newsies ran towards their docks. Bumlets stood at the end of the alley to make sure no one was spying while Jack and the others brainstormed for a hiding place. Finally, Davey spoke up.

"This right here," he said, pointing to a place right next to the jail. "It's perfect. We hide it just out of sight of anyone who's in jail, so if they're caught they won't be able to find it when they're sitting there. If anyone from the other team comes to break them out, they won't be looking for the flag; they'll be focused on tagging the jail guard. And no one will go looking in that alley because they know someone will always be there guarding the jail."

"Excellent," Jack said, smiling broadly. "Ok now for positions. I want Crutchie and Dollface in the fire escapes as snipers. You too Snipe Shoota. You fellas got the best eyes and arms when it comes to this stuff. You just hide up there and keep a stash of snowballs wit ya and fire on anyone you see comin into our turf." They nodded as Jack looked around at the rest of the group.

"Davey, you's head of defensive plays, alright?" he said, looking at him. "You stay on our side and monitor everythin. Buttons, you's is on jail guard, so don't get hit. I'm gonna take Specs, Swift, Kid Blink, Mush, Racetrack, and Les to offense. We's gonna be the ones goin in and out of enemy lines. Les, you stay low to the ground. You's small so there's a good chance you won't be seen if ya hide."

"Everyone else stay on our side of the line and listen to Davey. If anyone gets caught, just give this whistle." Jack stuck his fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly, making everyone cover their ears.

"If you're in jail and think its time for a jail break, just shout out somethin like uhh..."

"Soak 'em!" Les shouted, making Jack smile.

"Perfect," he said, as everyone stood up. He handed the scarf to Dollface. "Alright, Doll, you go hide this. Everyone else to your stations!" They cheered excitedly and ran off in different directions. Dollface ran to the center alley that faced the docks with the scarf hidden under her jacket so no one would see. She looked back over her shoulder and saw that everyone was watching Jack draw a line in the snow with a stick to separate the boundaries. She smiled and turned back around, only to be dragged by Spot to a reclusive spot in the nearby alley. He quickly looked around to see if they were alone before grabbing her face and pressing his lips to here. A moment later, they broke apart and Dollface gave Spot a curious look.

"What was that about?" she asked, his hands moving to her waist.

"You greeted me with a snowball to the face today," he said, raising his eyebrow. "You owe me."

"Fair enough," she shrugged as they began kissing again. Warmth spread all throughout Dollface's body as their kissing grew more intense, as they kissed each other's lips, chins, and necks. She wished they weren't both wearing layers of clothing; she wanted nothing more than to touch him. They were too preoccupied to hear the crunching of footsteps approaching them and briskly pulled apart when they heard a new voice.

"Dollface, we gotta get- Jesus Christ!" It was Jack. He had been searching for Dollface and instead found her with Spot attached to her lips. All three turned beet red at the embarrassment of the situation. Dollface and Spot weren't ones to parade their relationship around so they lived for secluded moments like this. Jack had never seen them kiss and to stumble upon them in this predicament... Well it only would have been more awkward if Crutchie had caught them. Jack looked away from them as he continued to relay his message.

"Um... We's about to start," he said, very flustered. Spot said nothing but just squeezed Dollface's hand and ran off to rejoin his team. Dollface and Jack stood there, very awkwardly, for another minute before Dollface had the sense to say something.

"I'll uh... just go hide this then," she mumbled walking past Jack. She then stopped and turned back to him. "Please don't tell-"

"You really think I'd tell Crutchie?" he asked. "What kinda friend would I be if I did that?" Dollface smiled and ran off to hide the flag.


	3. Chapter 3

Ten minutes later and the game was on. The flag was safely hidden, out of sight from anyone in jail. Dollface had watched as Crutchie pulled himself up to a fire escape in one of the alleys and then gently tossed up his ammunition of snowballs. She was amazed at how much upper body strength he had but if you had one bum limb, you had to make up for it in something else. She then decided to set up her ammunition on a fire escape in the same alley as the flag and jail. This way she could not only defend the flag if need be but could also stop the other team from breaking out their friends. She made a good choice as they quickly got two of the Brooklyn newsies out and Red had tried to hit Buttons. But Dollface came out of nowhere and hit Red first, putting him in jail too.

It was another 15 minutes before they heard the whistle that signified someone had been capture. Buttons shouted out to Davey and found out Racetrack and Swift had been caught. Dollface swore under her breath. They were the best runners. If they were going to find the other team's flag, they would have to rely on pure stealth now. Les might turn into their secret weapon.

However after ten minutes not much else had happened. They heard another whistle, this time Specs had been caught, but that was it. No one came through Dollface's alley and no one tried to make another jail break. She began shivering, having stood around now for almost 40 minutes. She had been warm when they had been walking all day or running from the Brooklyn newsies but now she wished Jack hadn't taken her hat and pulled her coat closer to her body. It smelled heavily of alcohol and cigars, reminding her of her father. No matter how many times she washed it, the smell never left, and even though he was no longer running after Crutchie and her, she still felt uneasy as the smell lingered. She shivered and knew it had nothing to do with the cold weather.

Dollface tried to push the thought of her unpleasant father and childhood from her mind and sat down, leaning up against the brick of the building. She focused on the patches of ice that covered the fire escape and stated at the small icicles that had formed on the railings. Then finally, something happened. Another whistle filled the air, shortly followed by a cry of "soak 'em!"

It was Jack's voice. Dollface laughed slightly at the thought of Jack being caught by a bunch of Brooklyn newsies and knew she would never let him forget it. She then saw Mush go running past her alley and a minute later heard the cheers of their team. They had been freed and made their way back to their side of the line. Buttons and Dollface celebrated together and cheered loudly. The Brooklyn newsies who were still in jail groaned heavily, not having been freed yet.

But no more than five minutes later, Dollface saw a blur run past the alley. She stood up from the fire escape and leaned over the edge, almost slipping on the ice. She saw someone's foot sticking out as they hid behind the corner of the building. She was sure it was a Brooklyn newsie trying to free his team mates. Buttons had bent down to retie his shoe and wasn't paying attention when the boy finally revealed himself.

Dollface rolled her eyes and bent down to pick up a snowball from her stash. Of course it was Spot. He didn't see Dollface on the fire escape and slowly creeped towards the unknowing Buttons. He was going for stealth rather than a full on attack, very unlike Spot. His team mates quietly watched him, eager to be freed. Dollface raised her arm and threw the snowball at Spot but unfortunately missed. She had given up her position as it flew over his head. Spot whipped his head up and saw her on the fire escape.

"Buttons, look out!" Dollface shouted, bending down to pick up a new snowball. Spot threw his snowball at Buttons, but thanks to Dollface's warning, he jumped out of the way and landed in the snow. As Spot bent down to make a new snowball, Dollface stepped forward on the fire escape, trying to get a better angle on him. Then suddenly she felt her feet go out from under her as she slipped on a patch of ice. She fell underneath the railing and over the edge but was able to reach out her right arm and grab ahold of the railing. She felt her shoulder pop and screamed out in pain, dangling by just her arm as she struggled to maintain a grip on the icy railing.

"Doll!" Buttons shouted, looking up. "You ok?"

"Of course I ain't ok!" she shouted out. She tried to pull herself up but her shoulder gave a painful throb and she cried out again. Her fingers began slipping on the railing as she reached up to grab it with her other arm. Then Dollface was struck by a moment of pure terror as she saw, rather than felt, her fingers slip from the railing. Her heart dropped to her stomach as she fell two stories to the ground.

The snow did little to cushion her fall. She landed on her right arm, her shoulder already throbbing with pain, and felt another sharp pain shoot through her wrist. Spot, Buttons, and the other newsies ran over to her, the game forgotten. Dollface gritted her teeth, forcing herself to not cry, and clutched her wrist.

"Buttons, go get your newsies and tell 'em the games off," Spot said, looking up at him and then looking at Red. "Red, go tell our gang too." They all ran out of the alley, knowing this was serious, and left Spot and Dollface alone. She tried to sit up and move but he gently pushed her back down.

"Hey, take it easy ok," he said, inspecting her head for any bumps. "What happened? What hurts?"

"My arm," Dollface said, her entire right arm now throbbing painfully. "My wrist and shoulder." Spot gave her a worried look, seeing her pained expression, and grabbed her left hand.

"We'll fix ya up, don't worry," he said, trying to convince himself more than anything. After sitting silently for another minute or so, he helped her into a sitting position and then moved to sit behind her so she could lean against him.

That's when the first few boys came into the alley. First it was Davey, followed by Jack, and finally Crutchie. They could hear the running footsteps of the others closely behind them. Davey, Jack, and Crutchie all walked over to where Spot and Dollface were sitting and crouched next to them.

"What happened? You hurt?" Crutchie asked anxiously. "What's wrong?"

"She slipped on the fire escape," Spot said, pointing up to the fire escape she had been standing on five minutes before. "She grabbed onto the railing as she was falling, that's how she hurt her shoulder, and then fell before any of us could get up there to help her. She landed on her arm, that's how she hurt her wrist."

"Why you always gotta be gettin hurt, huh?" Crutchie asked, trying to smile for her. He reached out his hand and gently brushed her hair from her face. She tried to smile back but her arm gave another painful throb and she grimaced. The rest of the Manhattan newsies, and a few Brooklyn newsies, ran into the alley and stopped when they saw the pain Dollface was in.

"Ok, we gotta get ya back to the boardin house," Spot said, seeing her grimace. "Kloppman will get ya straight in no time."

"NO!" all the Manhattan newsies shouted out. Spot froze and looked around at them.

"What?" he asked confused.

"We wasn't supposed to be playing in the snow today," Jack explained. "Kloppman told us to just sell papes and then come back home. He didn't want us to get sick or-"

"Hurt," Dollface finished, clenching her teeth. "We can't exactly go waltzin in there afta we completely disobeyed him. Specially not when he turned out to be right."

"Dollface, this is nuts," Spot said, looking at her. "You's hurt bad and you'd ratha keep ya pride intact than your arm?"

"He's right," Davey said, looking around at all the boys. "If we don't get her arm fixed correctly, it could end up badly."

"Don't I know it," Crutchie said, looking awkwardly at his bad leg. They all stood around, silently weighing their options.

"Ya know what, I'm fine," Dollface said, breaking the silence. She struggled to stand up, every movement sending shots of pain down her arm, but gritted her teeth and hid it from everyone else. "Let's just go back home. Kloppman don't hafta know anythin about this. In fact my arms feeling betta already."

"No it ain't," Jack said, walking forward. "Look, Davey's right, we gotta get you fixed up. You's hurt bad and I'll be damned if I let this happen to ya. I put ya up in that fire escape so I'm gonna take care of ya." He scratched the back of his neck, thinking.

"Ok look, we can eitha go back home and have Kloppman ride us hard for this one," Jack said, looking around to everyone, "But then at least Dollface will be betta. Sure, he might not let this one go for a while but at least we'll all be ok."

"_I'll_ be damned if I'm the one that gets all you's in trouble," Dollface said, shaking her head. "We don't all gotta suffer just cuz I'm so clumsy. No, we ain't goin back with me looking like this."

"Then what do you suggest we do?" Davey asked her.

"We could go back to my place," Spot suggested. "It's around the corna from here and then we can try and see what's goin on with ya arm. Can't really tell in all this clothin anyway. We gots a fireplace there so we can warm up too."

"Betta than nothin," Jack shrugged. "Lead the way."

The other newsies parted, letting Spot walk past him, and they turned to follow him. Dollface walked slowly, clutching her arm and every single step causing her pain. She tried very hard to hide it, looking down and focusing on the footsteps she was making in the snow, but soon felt as if she would pass out from the pain.

"Jesus, you's stubborn," Jack groaned, seeing her struggle. He stopped and scooped her up so he had one arm supporting her back and one under her bent knees. Dollface blushed when Jack did this. It made her feel infinitely smaller and weak.

"Jack, I'm fine just-" she began to say but her arm gave another sharp throb and she grimaced. Jack gave her a look and she stopped talking, deciding to accept his gesture. They continued walking for another five minute or so before coming to an old warehouse. It was in a rather abandoned area, close to the docks of course, and they all followed Spot as he turned the corner. He stopped in front of a large set of metal doors that looked so brittle that a single kick would knock them over. This seemed to be the case, as all Spot did to open them was push them in with his toes.

"It ain't much, but we call it home when the alleys don't seem so comfortable," he said, letting everyone walk inside. They looked around at the vast, empty room. There was indeed a fireplace, like Spot had said, but that was the only thing that made the room seem welcoming. It was dark and cold and dank and there were piles of crates, boxes, and barrels stacked up in one corner. Over by the fireplace, there was an assortment of blankets and pillows. Spot ran over to them and gathered up his blankets. He piled them together and Jack carefully set Dollface down on them.

"We'll get you fixed up," he said promisingly. "You'll be good as new real soon."

"I know," Dollface said, putting on a brave smile. "I'm in good hands."


	4. Chapter 4

"Let me get some light goin here," Spot said. He stooped down next to the fireplace and picked up a candle. He pulled a match out of pocket, struck it against the brick and lit the candle. He walked back to Dollface, sitting down next to her and setting the candle on the ground.

"Hey, can one of you's get a fire goin?" Spot asked, turning around to some of the other newsies, who were still taking in the Brooklyn newsies' "home." "There's some wood ova in the corna, we gathered that before the first storm of winter hit, and there should be a few matches lyin next to 'em." Racetrack and Mush walked over to the woodpile and set to work.

"Ok," Spot said, turning his attention back to Dollface. She could see it in his face that he had no clue what to do. "How ya feelin?"

"Like sunshine," she said through her teeth. Even through her pain, she still found enough strength to slip in a snide remark. Spot looked up at Davey, Jack, and Crutchie, trying to ask for help without actually saying it. Davey took the hint and crouched down next to Dollface's other side.

"Well we need to get your clothes off," he said, carefully. Crutchie gave him a protective look so Davey explained further. "We need to see what your arm looks like. It might not be as bad as we think."

"Oh trust me," Dollface said, moving to unbutton her coat. "It's as bad as we think." Spot helped her sit up as Davey slowly and carefully helped her to remove her coat. Dollface bit her lip, trying not to cry out in pain but as they moved onto her next layer, she couldn't help but groan. She looked down at the remaining layers of clothing and suddenly wished she hadn't worn so many shirts.

When they finally pulled off her last shirt, Dollface was down to the piece of fabric she used to cover her breasts. If she hadn't been in so much pain, she might have been embarrassed at being in such a vulnerable position in front of the boys, especially Spot. Even though they'd all seen her with her shirt off, either when changing or swimming, it was much different when she was lying on the floor, clearly in a lot of pain. Davey looked down at her arm and grimaced. Her arm was hanging loosely from her body, as if disconnected, and it looked like a bone was almost protruding from her wrist. Her shoulder was swollen and red while her wrist was a sickly black and purple.

"Whatchu thinkin docta?" Jack asked Davey but he didn't need to ask. They all saw how bad it really was, much worse than they'd thought.

"I think her shoulder's dislocated," he said biting the corner of his lip. He looked worried. "Her wrist is definitely broken. It looks like the bone almost popped out. Don't know how that could have happened. Even from two stories up, I don't think a fall like that could have done this much damage."

"She broke it back when we was twelve," Crutchie chimed in. "Maybe it's just weak and ain't healed exactly right." Davey nodded taking this in and thinking about what to do next.

"So what's we gonna do?" Crutchie asked after Davey had been silent for a while. He took one last look at her shoulder before looking at Dollface. He took a heavy breath before speaking.

"You're not going to like this, but we need to pop your shoulder back in," he told her. Dollface nodded, knowing they would have to eventually but not looking forward to it any more. Davey nodded too and looked up at the newsies who weren't working on the fire.

"Kid Blink, go outside and get a big scoop of snow. We're gonna try and relax the muscles in her shoulder before I pop it back in," he told Kid Blink, who nodded and ran outside. Davey then turned to Spot. "Are there anymore candles? I'm gonna need more light."

"Look along next to the door," Spot said to the Manhattan newsies. "Light 'em usin this candle, don't wanna waste the few matches we got." They followed Spot's directions and walked towards the door. Les was approached Davey, eager to help.

"What can I do?" he asked his brother.

"Spot, mind if we rip up one of your old sheets? We can bring you one from our house to replace it if you want," Davey asked him. Spot nodded, clearly not caring. "Ok, Les, go find an old sheet that's lying around. Rip it up into some long strips and then into a piece big enough to use as a sling, alright?" Les nodded and ran off, happy to finally be of use. Kid Blink had returned with his cap full of snow. He placed it next to Davey, who thanked him, and stepped out of the way. Davey took a small handful and placed it on Dollface's shoulder.

She winced at the cold but also felt immense relief. Davey took another handful and placed it on her wrist, soothing Dollface more. She closed her eyes and took deep breaths, tryin to calm herself down.

"Ok, ya ready, Dollface?" Davey asked. She nodded and he brushed the snow off her shoulder. He put one hand on her elbow and another just above her shoulder.

"Wait!" Crutchie shouted nervously. Davey stopped and seemed slightly relieved someone had stopped him. "I don't want this to get any worse than it is now. How do ya know how to do this, Dave? I ain't so sure we should be doin this."

"I did this once for my father," Davey said, removing his hands from Dollface and wiping them on his pants legs. "My mom couldn't stand to do it so he walked me through it. Said I did it just fine." Skittery and Bumlets walked over, carrying four candles, and set them near Davey. Under the light, they could see her arm much better and saw it was even worse than what they thought before. Crutchie frowned and furrowed his eyebrows.

"Just do it then," he said quietly. Davey placed his hand on her arm again and was just about to pop it in when Jack burst out. He pulled from his pocket his scarf that they had just been using as a flag. That seemed like such a long time ago. He balled it up and handed it to Dollface, who took it with her good arm.

"Bite on it," he explained. "This ain't gonna feel good."

"No kiddin," she mumbled, putting the scarf in between her teeth. Davey placed his hands on her arm again and this time no one interrupted him.

"Ok, on the count of three," he said, looking at her. "One. Two." Spot grabbed her free hand.

"Three!" Davey shoved her arm upward at an angle and Dollface yelled out, her shout muffled by the fabric that she was sure she had bitten through. She felt it go back into place but it gave painful throbs for another minute or so. She squeezed Spot's hand hard. Davey placed more snow on her now corrected shoulder and she relaxed her grip on his hand. She spit out the fabric and took slow breaths, trying to breath through the pain that was slowly fading away. Davey looked at her shoulder again, pressing his hands on either side of it to make sure it was surely back in its socket. Dollface winced.

"Sorry, Doll," he said apologetically. He pulled his hands away and sat back. "I think it's ok right now."

"Yeah but what about her wrist?" Crutchie asked. In the few minutes they had spent there, the condition of her wrist worsened. Not only did it look more bruised but it was also swollen to twice the size of her good wrist.

"That's what I'm worried about," Davey said. "It looks like the bone isn't in place at all. Wrapping it in bandages wouldn't do much except set the bone in an incorrect position."

"Say Dave, you's pretty good at this stuff," Jack said. "Where'd ya learn it?"

"My grandfather was a doctor," he explained, moving his eyes from Dollface's wrist to Jack. "He used to have a big library of medical books that I would read as a kid. Sometimes he'd have me help him with patients too."

"Look, that's great and all," Dollface said, interrupting their conversation, "But it feels like someone stabbed my wrist with ten knives or something." Davey called over Les, who brought with him the fabric he had just ripped up. Davey carefully took Dollface's wrist in his hand, making her wince.

"I think we have to push this bone back in," Davey told her. Spot suddenly stood up, slightly jittery.

"I'm sorry, just a little uh... jumpy," he said anxiously. "This kinda stuff freaks me out a little. I need to uh... get some air. I'll be back." They watched as he walked away and out the door, surprised that there was something Spot Conlon, leader of the Brooklyn newsies, couldn't handle. Dollface swallowed a lump in her dry throat and closed her eyes.

"Just do it, don't count down or nothin. That makes it worse," she said. She took in deep breaths, waiting for the sharp pain she knew was coming. Davey took his thumbs and pressed down on the bone, hard, and it moved slightly. Dollface screamed, not having anything to bite on. She heard Cructhie move and sit down next to her.

"Worst parts ova," he told her, grabbing her good hand. She kept her eyes closed and let Crutchie comfort her. He took his other hand and brushed his fingers through her hair. "Davey's wrapping it up now in a buncha bandages. It's ok."

She felt as Davey carefully but methodically wrapped her arm, from her elbow up to her fingers, in the small pieces of fabric that Les made.

"Ok, I need you to sit up," Davey said when he had finished, and Crutchie helped her into a sitting position. Davey then started wrapping her shoulder to hold it in place. These bandages were more awkward, crossing in front if her chest, under her other arm, and across her back.

"I think that'll do it," Davey said, tying the bandage off. He handed Dollface her first layer of shirts that Crutchie helped her to put on. It was almost as painful to put her clothing back on as it was to take off but she was relieved to finally have her coat back on, as she had started to shiver from the cold. Davey tied her arm into a sling so her shoulder and wrist wouldn't worsen.

"Now I have to tell you," he said, looking at them as he finished tying the sling behind Dollface's neck, "I really wouldn't count on what I've done. You should really see a doctor or at least talk to Kloppman. I know you might get in trouble but he does care a lot about you guys." Jack, Crutchie, and Jack all nodded, agreeing with what he said. They knew Kloppman cared about them. He treated each of them as one of his own children, though he had none of his own. But Dollface didn't want to disappoint him by telling him they hadn't listened. She swore to herself she would not tell him about her injury unless she absolutely needed to.

They all then moved closer to the fire that was now roaring thanks to Racetrack and Mush. They were once again in good spirits now that Dollface was doing better. Her arm still throbbed painfully every now and then but it wasn't anything she couldn't bare. They took turns telling their stories from the game of capture the flag that had been interrupted. They laughed when Les talked about smacking one of the Brooklyn newsies in the face to free Jack, Racetrack, and the others who had been put in jail.

Suddenly, they heard the doors open and saw Spot walk in, followed by the some of the other Brooklyn newsies. They burst in cheering loudly and all carrying bundles. It wasn't until they came into the light of the fire that they saw they were carrying food.

"In celebration of our wonderful day off and the miracle healing of Dollface," Spot declared happily, setting down the pile of bread in his arms. The boys swarmed around the different foods the Brooklyn newsies had brought; there was bread, apples, and a few assorted vegetables. Spot took a seat next to Dollface, handing her some bread and a tomato. She gladly accepted it, her stomach now growling now that her arm wasn't in as much pain, but gave him a curious look.

"Where exactly did you get all this?" she asked, biting into the bread.

"Let's just say I have my sources," he said, taking a crisp bite from his apple. He continued when Dollface raised her eyebrow at him. "Everything was closed so we broke into the bakery and produce stores. Nothing special."

The newsies ate and laughed and kept each other company. They explained that they came to find this abandoned building one day a few years ago. It used to be storage for cargo from ships but was closed down because a storm left a hole in the ceiling and the cargo was ruined. The boys used to hole to somehow create a makeshift chimney and fireplace. Though they actually preferred to sleep in the alleys and docks most of the time, they only used the building to escape from harsh weather.

After a while, the room's loud conversations and stories died down to individual chatter. No longer in much as pain, Dollface was thinking a little more clearly and turned to Spot, something on her mind.

"What?" he asked, seeing this.

"Nothin, it's fine," she said. "I just... can I ask you why ya ran outta here earlier? When Davey was fixin my wrist..."

"Oh that," Spot said quietly and looked down at his fingers in his lap. "I just got uncomfortable with the bones and bruises and stuff."

"That's a lie and I know it," Dollface said. "You Brooklyns deal with that stuff all the time. I've come down here before and found ya stitchin up ya own leg."

"I didn't like seein you like that," he finally admitted. His face, already red from the cold, reddened more as he blushed with embarrassment. "It was hard enough watchin you when he popped ya shoulder back in, that was awful. So when he said he had to do that to ya wrist too I had to get outta there."

"But I was fine," she said, trying to catch his eye. "Sure it hurt a little, well more like a lot, but I'm betta now. What's the problem?"

"Didn't want nobody to think the Brooklyn leada was loosin his marbes," he mumbled. "Not to mention all the crap I get from the otha boys about you... about us. Even though we don't let them see anythin, they all know."

"Hey, there ain't nothin to be embarrassed ova," she said, grabbing his face and turning it towards her. "You think Jack's all high and mighty all the time? Just the otha day he stubbed his toe and nearly cried. And he and Katherine are togetha. Don't make him any weaka just cuz he loves someone. Loving someone ain't a weakness, Spot."

Then she blushed, realizing that neither of them had actually said "I love you" yet. She felt like she had made a big mistake and that Spot would shy away even more than usual but instead he placed a gentle kiss on her lips. It was the most they had ever (purposely) done in front of the other boys. But when they pulled apart, no one really seemed to notice. No one whistled or made jokes or laughed. Dollface smiled, relieved that perhaps the other boys weren't as immature as they both thought.

It was then that Jack glanced at Davey's watch.

"Oh shit! It's almost five," he said, standing up. "Guys, we gotta go. Kloppman's gonna be suspicious if we stay out much longa." The Manhattan newsies all stood up, saying goodbye to the Brooklyn newsies, and began bundling back up for the long walk back to the boarding house in the snow. Spot helped Dollface to her feet and pulled her close to his body.

"Hey, I know this day went kinda downhill for you," he said so quietly only she could hear it, "But it was pretty good for me. Maybe next time you visit though, you won't break ya arm." She smiled as he kissed her cheek. The other boys called after her and she ran off, waving goodbye to the remaining newsies. She still felt the warmth of Spot's lips on her cheek as they braced themselves for the cold of winter once again.


	5. Chapter 5

They had just said goodbye to Davey and Les, who were being scolded by their mother for staying out so long, and were five minutes away from the boarding house. Jack stopped Dollface suddenly, thinking of something that would have gotten them in trouble.

"Take the sling off," he said, as he helped to untie the knot that was behind her neck. "If Kloppman saw that, he'd know somethin was up. Not to mention we's already an hour later than he thought." Dollface's arm fell from the sling as Jack finished untying it. Pain shot through her arm again as it dangled almost uselessly at her side. Jack saw her grimace and began to worry.

"I just hope we can hide this from Kloppman," he said worriedly, handing her the sling, and she stuffed in her pocket with her good hand. She bent her arm and held it close to her body, supporting it with her other arm.

"We'll be fine," she said, taking deep breaths, not showing any pain. Jack nodded and they began walking again, now behind the rest of the group. They had already begun walking into the boarding house and Dollface and Jack hung back, hoping not to draw attention to her arm or Jack's severe lack of punctuality. But of course, Kloppman saw them, just as they were about to walk upstairs.

"Jack, where were you boys?" he asked. "I thought you would have been back hours ago."

"Turns out it was a good day for papes afta all," Jack said, creating a lie on the spot without hesitation, something Dollface had always admired. "Since it was so snowy, peoples didn't wanna go much past their own houses but they still wanted the news. So we climbed up and down fire escapes, selling papes through people's windows."

"Clever," Kloppman said, still not entirely believing him.

"Then Miss Medda told us to come to the playhouse," he continued. "She felt bad we was outside and let us stay inside and brought us some hot coffee and a little food. She was real nice. That's why we've been out so long. Lost track of time."

"Why are you holding your arm weirdly?" Kloppman asked Dollface. She might as well have had the sling on. She was holding her arm in such an awkward way that it was almost obvious something was wrong. She immediately let go of her arm and let it drop to her side, biting the inside of her mouth as it began throbbing. She then tugged on the end of her sleeve to hide the bandages that covered her hand.

"Oh it's nothin," she shrugged. "Just slipped on some ice earlier, fell a little. It's just a bruise that'll be gone in a few days." This Kloppman seemed to believe.

"Do you see why I didn't want you playing around?" he asked. "Just be glad all that happened was a small bruise. You could have hit your head or sprained an ankle..."

"_Or dislocated a shoulder,"_ Dollface thought as it gave another painful throb.

"Yeah, I see what you means," she nodded. She started walking towards the stairs again, eager to get upstairs and away from Kloppman's prying questions. Seeing this, Jack took over the conversation again.

"Well, we's pretty tired," he said. "Gonna go ahead and get upstairs with the othas." And before he could ask anything else, they had retreated upstairs. All around the boys were removing layers, slightly hot from a long trip back and the thrill of sneaking past a suspicious Kloppman. The pain had returned to Dollface's arm, almost as bad as before, as she walked toward her bed. She sat down on Crutchie's bed, gently massaging her wrist.

"Is it still hurtin?" Dollface looked up to see Crutchie standing in front of her, a worried expression on his face. She nodded.

"It's alright though," she shrugged. "It'll be betta soon I think." She began unbuttoning her coat rather awkwardly with her left hand. Crutchie sat down next to her and helped her to take her coat off, easing her bad arm out of it's sleeve. He helped her do the same with her layers of shirts. She thanked him when she was down to her comfortable cotton long sleeve shirt and picked up her clothes, setting them back in their drawer.

She turned around to see Crutchie staring at her arm and realized she had absentmindedly pushed up her sleeves, revealing the bandages that were carefully wrapped around her wrist. He saw her notice this and looked away, wiping his hands on his pants.

"Hey," she said softly, sitting back down next to him. "Everything's fine. We had lots of fun today, got home without Kloppman suspectin anythin, nobody got hurt-"

"You got hurt, Doll," he said, looking up at her.

"But I'm fine now," she said reassuringly. "Davey fixed me up real good. My arm's gonna be fine in a coupla days, you'll see." He nodded a worried expression still on his face.

"When I saw how hurt you was," he said quietly, "I just thought that maybe we shoulda listened to Kloppman. I kept thinkin bout my leg and how the reason its so bad is cuz we didn't get it fixed or nothin. And I didn't know what was gonna happen to you. I couldn't stand the idea of you havin a bad arm. It's bad enough one of us is broken and now you too."

"Hey, you ain't broken," Dollface said. "Your _leg_ is the part that's broken. You got so much more that makes up for it though. You're strong. You could beat any of us in an arm wrestlin game in five seconds flat. You's got a gut instinct that's almost always right. Not to mention you got the biggest heart here. I _know_ that I can count on you." He smiled at her kind words and she gently ruffled his hair.

"Ok well let's get the sling back on," he said, changing the subject. "Don't want your arm to get any worse than it is now."

But just as they were about to tie her arm in the sling again, Kloppman walked in the room announcing dinner. It was going to be very hard to hide this from him. All throughout dinner, Dollface forced herself to use her arm normally, though every move pained her. She tried switching to her left hand to eat when Kloppman wasn't looking but he caught her switching hands a few times. If he suspected anything, though, he didn't bring it up. When they had finally finished eating, Dollface was among the first upstairs, out from under the watchful eye of Kloppman.

"Dollface, please, would you let me look at it?" Jack was asking for the fourth time thirty minutes later. Everyone was off in their own games of cards or marbles and were choosing to ignore yet another fight between Jack and Dollface. Jack saw she was once again in pain but she insisted all was well. They were once again caught in a battle of stubbornness.

"Jack, I'm fine," she said, once again, rolling her eyes. "It just needs time to heal. Leave it alone, and it will." Jack looked at her and then grabbed her bad wrist, lightly squeezing it. Dollface yelled out in pain, and while she was distracted, Jack shoved up her sleeve. He had won this battle.

He began unwrapping the bandages until it revealed her bare skin. It was still very swollen and bruised. The bone that Davey had supposedly popped back into place was still very noticeable. He might as well have not done anything; the long walk home and having to use it normally in front of Kloppman had caused it to slip back out of place.

"Doll, I think we gotta-" Jack started to say, shaking his head, but Dollface ripped her arm away from him and rolled down the sleeve again.

"No," she said sternly. "We don't gotta do nothin. I'm fine. Just give it time to heal. It's my problem to worry about."

"But it ain't!" he said in exasperation. "God, Dollface, when you gonna learn that your problems are our problems?"

"That's exactly what I don't want to happen," she said. "Just cuz I screwed up don't mean we all gotta suffer the consequences."

"But I screwed up too," he said, trying to get her to listen to him. "I shoulda neva let us all go out. I shoulda kept my promise to Kloppman and made us all come back. And now cuz I didn't do that, I'm not the one sufferin. You is. And it's my fault."

Dollface saw the genuine concern in his face. He truly felt guilty for what happened and clearly was just trying to help. She sighed and slowly rolled her sleeve back up, presenting her wrist to Jack. He gently smiled at her and gestured for them to sit on his bed.

"You're not gonna want to hear this," he said, after another minute of examining her wrist, "But I think it's time to tell Kloppman. Obviously what Davey did was only temporary. If your wrist is like this now, I can only imagine what your shoulder's gonna be like too. Let's just come clean and get you fixed up."

"No, I ain't doin that," Dollface said stubbornly. "Look, I'll make a deal wit ya. Let's just wrap up my wrist again and if it ain't any betta by this time tomorrow, we can tell Kloppman."

"Fine," Jack said, beginning to wrap her wrist again. "But I don't like it."

He had just finished wrapping it and was about to argue with her to put the sling back on when Kloppman walked in the room. Jack quickly helped Dollface to roll down her sleeve as Kloppman walked towards the lamp at the far end of the room.

"Ok boys, lights out," he declared. The boys groaned but put away their games regardless and walked towards their beds. "I know that you had a busy day today but I'm just glad everyone is here safe and sound. You just be sure to thank Miss Medda for being so kind to you today."

"What are you talkin-" Racetrack began to say but Jack hastily cut him off.

"Oh don't worry," he said reassuringly, shooting Racetrack a look. "We'll be sure to thank her, won't we fellas?"

Everyone nodded and murmured in agreement not sure what they were agreeing to. Kloppman surveyed the room suspiciously as Dollface crossed over to her bed. She suddenly stopped and stared at the ladder that she would have to climb to get in bed. If Kloppman hadn't been watching, one of the boys would have most likely helped her up. But she was on her own. She winced slightly as she lifted her arm up to grab onto the ladder.

"You alright, Dollface?" Kloppman asked, seeing her struggle. She took a deep breath before responding.

"Yeah, just tired," she said, climbing painfully slow. Everyone was watching her, as she was the last one to get in bed. She gritted her teeth and tried to ignore the stabbing pain in her shoulder but she felt it pop as she finally reached the top and climbed into bed. She let out as involuntary yelp of pain, that Crutchie tried to cover by knocking his crutch over. Kloppman eyed them suspiciously but turned the light out anyway and left the room. Everyone waited a few minutes until they heard the definite sound of Kloppman closing his bedroom door before moving or talking. Then all of a sudden the dark room was filled with noise, everyone talking at once and hopping out of their beds.

"Doll, what happened?" Crutchie asked, jumping up and standing next to her bed.

"My shoulda," she said through her teeth, clutching it with her free hand. "Popped out again."

"It's ok we'll take care of it," Crutchie said comfortingly. "We got this."

"What's wrong?" Jack asked, walking up to them.

"Her shoulda popped out again," Crutchie said. "What should we do, Cowboy?" He was quiet for a moment before answering.

"Ok I'm serious now. We gotta tell Kloppman," he said insistently.

"No! I told you I ain't doin that," Dollface said, looking for his face in the dark.

"Dollface, I think it's time," Racetrack said, walking toward them. "We can't handle this and it's time we admit it."

"I can handle this," she said stubbornly. "I can and I will. All we gotta do is pop it back in."

"Dollface, please just-" Boots said from across the room.

"No!" she said, nearly shouting. They all froze as they heard movement below them and breathed out when it became still again.

"Just someone pop it back in," she whispered. She sat up and moved to crawl down the ladder but cried out in pain. She then felt a pair of arms lift her out of her bed and onto Crutchie's bed below. Even though it was pitch black, she could tell it was Jack.

"Dollface, you's bein stupid now," Crutchie said, sitting next to her. "We gots to get Kloppman's help. This a sure fire way for your arm to get worse. You don't wanna end up like me with a bum limb."

"Well if that happens, I'll be able to sell more papes," she said, ignoring him. "Now who wants to pop it back in?" Her question was greeted by more of the boys trying to reason with her, much to her annoyance.

"Ok well maybe I'll just do it myself," she said to get them to be quiet.

"Fine, I'll do it," Jack said irritably. "I watched Davey do it before so hopefully I can do it right. Someone get the light."

"We can't turn the light on," Racetrack said. "If Kloppman opened his door, he'd see the light and know something was up." Jack sighed heavily but took Crutchie's place next to Dollface on the bed.

"Ok, Doll, just listen to me one more time and then I'll shut up," he said, looking at her. "I've neva done anything like this before, we can't turn the light on, and if we make any kinda noise, Kloppman'll hear. For the last time, are you sure you want to do this?" She reached up with her good arm and grabbed her hat from her bed.

"I trust ya, Cowboy," she said, putting the cap in her mouth. She heard him take in a deep breath and then the room went silent. He placed his hands where Davey had earlier, took another breath, and then jammed her arm upwards. Immediately, though, Dollface knew it hadn't worked. She screamed and was glad she had her cap to muffle the sound. Jack knew too that it hadn't worked.

"Shit, Doll, I'm sorry," he said, panicked. "I'm sorry. I didn't do it right. God dammit!" A few of the boys shushed him as he yelled out in frustration.

"Ok I don't think I can do this again," Jack said more quietly. "I don't think _you _can do this again, Doll." But Dollface merely shook her head and took the cap out of her mouth with a shaky hand.

"Come on, one more try and then we can give up," she said, gritting her teeth as her shoulder gave painful throbs. "I'll lie down this time, just like when Davey did it."

"Dollface, please-" Jack started saying but Dollface slapped him upside the head.

"Don't you give up on me," she said, lying back. "Just stick with me here." She put her cap back in her mouth and gave a thumbs up to Jack. He shook his head but put his hands on Dollface's arm anyway. Dollface felt his grip on her arm tighten and braces herself as he thrust her arm upward. It gave a sickly _pop _that told them it had gone back into place. Though she was relieved to have her shoulder back in place, Dollface bit down hard on her cap as tears escaped her eyes. She was very thankful for the darkness that concealed her tears. The pain began to dull and a few minutes later, Dollface sat up and silently wiped her eyes.

"Thanks, Jack" she said, patting his back as he looked back at her with a concerned look on his face. "I know that was a lot to ask of ya but you did it anyway."

"This happens again and we're telling Kloppman," he said, standing up and walking towards his bed. "I'm tired now don't bother me." They all watched as he plopped down on his bed.

"Ok we betta get to bed too," Racetrack said, breaking the silence. Everyone murmured in agreement and tiredly walked back to their beds. Dollface stood back up and offered Crutchie back his bed.

"Sometimes you scare me," he admitted to her. She laughed a little but patted his shoulder.

"I scare myself a little too," she said. Crutchie helped her up into her bed so she wouldn't hurt herself again and soon the room was filled with snores as the exhausted newsies drifted off to sleep.

Dollface, however, woke up constantly that night, her arm giving painful throbs as she turned in her sleep. When the sun began to rise, she felt relief knowing that her restless night would be over soon and somehow managed to fall back asleep for a few more minutes. Then the lights were being turned on and the boys were moving around, getting ready for the day. Dollface rolled over and groaned, both from being tired and in pain.

"Hey what's the weather look like?" she heard Jack ask someone.

"Well it hasn't snowed since yesterday but it hasn't melted any either," Kloppman responded. "Still rather cold out so make sure to bundle up, alright? And this time no lolly gagging at Medda's, just come right back here."

"Yessir," Jack mumbled sleepily. Dollface closed her eyes again, hoping to catch another minute of sleep but heard Kloppman walking over to wake her up.

"Please just leave me be," she said as he approached her bed. "Just five more minutes."

"Come on and get moving," he said with a laugh. He then grabbed her bad shoulder and shook her, hoping to get her to move. Dollface let out an involuntary shout and sat up, her whole arm now throbbing. Then she realized what she did and tried to brush it off but saw Kloppman looking at her. He had his arms crossed and gave her an dissapointed yet all knowing look. Dollface could try as hard as she wanted but there was no getting out of this.

"What's wrong with your arm?" he asked her.

"It's nothin. I told ya I just bruised it up a little yesterday," she said, beginning to crawl down the ladder. It was much easier going down than up and luckily it didn't cause her anymore pain than she was currently in. She tried to leave it at that and walk away from Kloppman without anymore questions but he blocked her way.

"Dollface, please, tell me if you're hurt," he said in such a gentle way that told her that maybe coming clean wouldn't be that bad. She glanced around and noticed that everyone in the room was watching them. She looked over at Crutchie, who nodded encouragingly, and then took a deep breath.

"I hurt my arm yestaday," she finally confessed. "My wrist is sorta broken and I dislocated my shoulda." Kloppman frowned and opened his mouth to say something but Dollface quickly stopped him

"But Davey fixed me up real good so it's ok!" she said, trying to sound optimistic.

"Hell it ain't," Racetrack said. "Her shoulda came out again last night and Jack tried twice until he could get it back in."

"Not to mention her wrist ain't any betta," Jack said, walking out of the bathroom. "I looked at it afta dinna last night and its almost worse than it was yestaday aftanoon." Dollface glared at Jack for revealing this. She had told Kloppman she was hurt but he didn't need to know it was that bad. Kloppman stood there a moment, taking in this information, and then sighed heavily. He wasn't angry, that would come later, but more like relieved that he was finally being told the truth.

"Ok let's look at it," he said to Dollface, walking over to the nearest bed, Crutchie's, and sitting down. "I need to see how bad it is myself."

"Please, I'm fine," Dollface said, ready to argue her way out of this but one look from Kloppman shut her up and she walked over to sit next to him. She slowly took off her shirt, refusing anyone's help despite the pain it caused her, and looked away as Kloppman took in all the bandages. He slowly started unwrapping the ones around her wrist and then grimaced when her skin was revealed. Jack was right; her wrist _was _worse than it had been the previous day. The bandages had done little to keep the bone in place and to stop swelling. It was a sickly dark purple and black. Dollface gritted her teeth as it began throbbing once the bandages were taken off.

Kloppman said nothing but moved on to undoing the bandages around her shoulder. Dollface couldn't see what her shoulder looked like but could tell from his expression that it was bad. As he removed the last of the bandages, she felt the heaviness of her arm pulling on her shoulder and gritted her teeth more. Kloppman took in the sight of her battered arm and then closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. The room was quiet as they all waited for some kind of reaction.

"I don't know how much I can do," he finally said. "If you had just come to me in the first place, it wouldn't be nearly this bad. Why on earth would you keep this from me?"

"Because I didn't do this from slipping on ice while selling papes," Dollface began to explain. "I did this cuz I fell off a fire escape, popped my shoulda grabbing onto the railing, and then broke my wrist falling down."

"It's my fault," Jack said, stepping forward. "The circulation center neva got their papes so we went to Brooklyn and goofed off with some of Spot Conlon's gang. We was playing a stupid game when Dollface hurt herself. I'm sorry, sir. I shoulda just listened to ya and made us all come home."

"You're right," he said, standing up and walking towards Jack. "I told you specifically not to do what you did. I told you so because I didn't want anything like this to happen." He pointed at Dollface and Jack looked down, feeling very ashamed.

"I fully know that you could not have forced everyone to come home," Kloppman continued. "But you could have set an example and come home yourself. Come on, Jack, you know these boys look up to you. You are the oldest. You are the leader. So act like it." Jack nodded silently, his face turning red, and Kloppman turned back to look at Dollface.

"Get dressed, we're going to the doctor," he finally said, walking to the door. "And don't worry about the money. I have it covered. Crutchie, you come with us. Everyone else get ready for the day. Be back here at four o'clock at the latest or so help me God you will sleep in the alley." He swiftly left the room but not one person moved. They had never seen Kloppman like this before, not since they all got hurt during the strike. They all just stood around, staring at the door that he had just left through.

"You heard him," Jack finally said, calling everyone back to attention. "Get ready. Let's get going."


	6. Chapter 6

Kloppman, Crutchie, and Dollface walked to the doctor in silence. The only sounds that could be heard were the crunching of their feet in the snow. Dollface felt a growing pit in her stomach. She had never been to a doctor before. She had grown to hate them because they refused to help Crutchie without any money. If they had just come across one selfless doctor when they were younger, things could be completely different. She also felt very nervous. She didn't know what to expect in the least and was very grateful that Crutchie had come with them.

They finally reached the doctor's house. Kloppman simply told them that he knew the man well and that he had only called upon him once or twice while working at the boarding house. Had it been a more pleasant day, the doctor would have come to the boarding house but making him walk in the snow to get there would have cost more money. Dollface took a deep breath as Kloppman knocked on the door and they waited for the answer. After a few moments, an elderly man, maybe the same age as Kloppman, opened the door. He said nothing and merely looked from Kloppman to the two battered newsies that stood before him. He then nodded and led them inside.

The house was warm, as there was a large fire in the fireplace. It was small but very cosy. The man gestured for them to all have a seat at the table in the kitchen. He left the room and returned shortly with a large black bag in his hand. He set it on the counter and then turned to face Kloppman.

"I would say its good to see you, Marcus, but the only time you bring the kids to me is when it's bad," he said, looking over to Dollface and Crutchie. "How may I be of assistance?"

"This is Dollface and her brother Crutchie," Kloppman said, introducing them. "And Dollface here is in a bit of a pickle. Tell the man." Dollface looked up at the man, his demeanor very serious, and wished that he would just smile.

"I uh... busted up my arm, sir," she said, her throat suddenly dry. "Hurt my shoulder and wrist." The man nodded and asked her how she hurt it, how long ago the accident happened, and what she had done to try and treat it. Having to recount the story in front of Kloppman again just made Dollface feel worse about the whole thing. She tried to pass her injury off as nothing serious but it had been causing her more pain by the minute. It soon became obvious when the pain distracted her from continuing the story that she did infact need help.

"Ok hop up here," the doctor said, when he saw that Dollface could hardly keep the conversation going. He patted the table that they were sitting around and helped Dollface up on it. He helped to take off her coat and unbutton her shirt. She gripped the edge of the table as her arm was ripped painfully from its sleeve. She hadn't bothered to put the bandages back on after Kloppman made her take them off and now both her shoulder and arm were frighteningly swollen.

The doctor slowly rotated Dollface's wrist in his hands, looking at it from all sides, and then asked her to wiggle different fingers and move her hand around, all of which caused her a great deal of pain. Then he moved onto her shoulder, methodically pressing his hands on either side and then finally trying to rotate it once in its socket. He stopped when he noticed Dollface shaking. He then stood in front of her and extended his hand.

"The name's Dr. Wesley," he said, as Dollface shook his hand, very confused. "Are you alright, Dollface? Other than being in a great deal of pain, I'm sure. Have you ever been to a doctor before?" Dollface simply shook her head so he continued.

"You know, there is nothing to be nervous about," he said in a very soft voice that was almost a whisper. "I'm a very good friend of Mr. Kloppman here and I know he would never take you kids to see a doctor he didn't trust. Now are you gonna be ok with me fixing your arm?" Dollface felt very small, as if he was talking to a five year old. She felt insulted and stupid and needed the man to understand her distrust.

"Doctas didn't exactly do much for me and Crutchie when we was kids," she said, sitting up tall. "Not when pop beat on us til we had bruises all ova our faces. Not when Crutchie hurt his leg. If one docta had been nice to us then, we might be callin Crutchie "Muscles" instead."

"I'm very sorry that happened to you," he said sincerely. "But I'm here to help you _now_. I'm here to help you so a year from now, you're not called "Sling." I promise that you may leave if you feel uncomfortable with everything but first you have to let me try." Dollface wanted nothing more than to jump off that table and walk out the door but her currently throbbing arm forced her to stay. After a few more seconds of Dr. Wesley looking at Dollface, he smiled and then moved to the counter. He began rummaging in his black bag and pulled out two handkerchiefs.

"Take these and fill them with snow, young man," he said, handing them to Crutchie. "Tie it off in a bundle and bring it back in here." Crutchie nodded and walked outside, letting in a cold breeze as the door opened and closed. He then began pulling out bottles of medicine, actual bandages, not ripped up pieces of cloth, small wooden sticks, and several large needles. Dollface swallowed heavily as she looked at the needles sitting on the counter and then felt a comforting pat on the back from Kloppman, reassuring her even though he should be furious with her right now.

"Ok this is for pain," Dr. Wesley said, pouring liquid from a bottle into a spoon. He handed it to Dollface, who sniffed it and made a disgusted face. She then counted down in her head and swallowed it all in one go. It was very bitter and thick and stuck to the back of her throat. She coughed and then gladly accepted the glass of water Dr. Wesley offered her, gulping down most of it, desperately trying to get rid of the lingering bitterness in her mouth.

Crutchie walked in with the bundles of snow as Dollface was taking her second dose of medicine. He laughed as she gagged on it again and handed the handkerchiefs to Dr. Wesley. He placed one bundle on her wrist and had Dollface hold the other to her shoulder with her good hand.

"Ok now we're relaxing the muscles and numbing everything up," he explained. "In a minute, I'm going to have to give you some shots that should numb your wrist even more. We'll wait a minute for them to take effect and then I'm going to push this bone back into place. Then we'll put it in a splint." Dollface said nothing but just nodded, not looking forward to the shots. They sat mostly in silence for a few minutes except for the occasional conversation between Kloppman and Dr. Wesley. Eventually though, Dr. Wesley moved to the counter and picked up a bottle of medicine. He stuck one of the needles in it, filled the vial with a clear liquid, and then did the same with another.

"Ok you can take the ice off," he instructed, sitting in a chair in front of her. She removed the ice and saw that the swelling had gone down slightly. "It's a good thing we had snow. This would be much worse without it." He picked up one of the needles and took her wrist in his other hand. Dollface felt her heartbeat quicken as the needle drew nearer to her skin and then looked as Crutchie grabbed her free hand, seeing how nervous she was. She squeezed it as Dr. Wesley stuck the needle in her arm and felt a pinch and then a small amount of pressure as he pushed the medicine out of the vial and into her arm.

"Wasn't so bad, now was it?" he asked, pulling the needle out of her arm. "One more and then we'll get going." The second shot didn't hurt as bad, as the medicine was beginning to kick in and she began to lose feeling in her arm.

"This is weird," Dollface said minute later, as she tried and failed to wiggle her fingers. Dr. Wesley laughed.

"Ok now you might still feel this but it shouldn't hurt too bad," he said. He took her wrist in both hands, looked it over again, and then pressed down on the protruding bone. It gave a definite cracking sound and Dollface let out a shout.

"And now it's over," he said, grabbing the wooden sticks and bandages. "Just going to wrap it up and then we'll move onto your shoulder." He places the wooden sticks around her wrist and then wrapped them to stay in place. When he was done, Dollface couldn't move her wrist.

"The use of your wrist is going to be very limited for a while," he said, going to fill three more needles with the same medicine. "But it should keep the bone in place long enough for it to heal correctly. Now your shoulder is a bit more tricky to fix, which is why I'm giving you three shots instead of two. Your shoulder is not being set in the correct place. So we're going to have to pop it back out and then set it correctly." Dollface did not like the sound of this. She winced slightly as the needles entered her shoulder and grabbed Crutchie's hand as she braced herself. Dr. Wesley gave her arm a painful tug that still hurt quite a bit, despite the medicine. He then rotated her shoulder slightly as it began throbbing again. Dollface squeezed Crutchie's hand harder, beginning to think three shots was not enough.

"It's ok, almost over," Crutchie said grabbing her hand now with both of his. Dollface shut her eyes and cried out as Dr. Wesley finally set her shoulder correctly. He grabbed the handkerchief of snow that had been melting slightly and set it on her shoulder. Dollface took slow breaths and focused on the cold drips of water running soothingly down her arm.

"And that's that," Dr. Wesley declared a few minutes later. He had bandaged Dollface's shoulder and helped her to put her clothes on, slowly and carefully over all the bandages. He then showed Crutchie how to properly wrap her arm in a sling so he could help her every morning. He wrapped it snugly and told her to keep it close to her body so small movements wouldn't hurt it. The medicine had not worn off yet and Dollface could hardly feel any part of her right arm. But Dr. Wesley assured her that once the feeling came back, she would most likely still be in pain for a few more days. She listened as he handed her a bottle of medicine.

"Take one spoonful three times a day," he said, tapping the bottle. "Maybe for tomorrow take two spoonfuls twice a day. It would probably be safe to take the bandages off of your shoulder in two or three weeks. As for your wrist, it's going to be six to eight weeks."

"Eight weeks!" Dollface said incredulously. "That's two months."

"Well you messed it up very badly," he said. "Just be patient and it'll heal fine. Make sure to come see me in a month though and I'll check up on everything, alright?" Dollface nodded and then hopped off the table, expecting to leave, but then Dr. Wesley turned to address Crutchie.

"Now let's see what we can do for your leg," he said unexpectedly.

"Oh no sir," Crutchie said, shaking his head. "It's been like this for years. Ain't nothing gonna fix it but that's ok."

"Why don't I just take a look?" he persisted. "You never know, I might be able to do something." Crutchie looked unsure at Dollface, who shrugged, and then to Kloppman, who gestured for him to get on the table that Dollface had been sitting on. Crutchie slowly climbed onto it and propped his leg up, rolling up his pants leg.

Dollface hadn't seen his bare leg in a long time. He never liked anyone to see it so he would change quickly in the boarding house or avoid trips to the docks to swim. It was scarily deformed and bent at a disturbing angle, worse than it was the last time she saw it like this. Dollface could understand why he kept it hidden. Dr. Wesley silently examined it for a few minutes, occasionally asking Crutchie to move it this way or that way.

"Unfortunately, I don't see anything I can do," he finally said. Crutchie nodded though didn't seem disappointed. He knew there wasn't anything to fix it. "If you really wanted to, we could break it and reset the bones, but it would be very painful and most likely require surgery."

"Naw I'm ok, doc," Crutchie said, rolling down his pants leg and climbing off the table. "It ain't worth the trouble. Besides, without the gimp, how would I sell any papes?" Everyone laughed and Dollface smiled, grateful for her brother's always present optimism.

They said goodbye to Dr. Wesley and Kloppman tried to pay him without the twins noticing but Dollface felt a newfound sense of guilt as she watched Kloppman drop several coins into his hand. It should have been her paying, not Kloppman. It was she who had disobeyed him and messed up and now she couldn't even properly own up to her mistake. The walk back to the boarding house was quiet again but Dollface finally broke the silence.

"Thank you, Kloppman," she said sincerely. "For getting me fixed and letting Crutchie come and not being that mad."

"Oh that was only when I thought they'd have to cut your arm off it was so bad," Kloppman said jokingly. "Just wait til I get you and Jack in the same room again. _That's_ when the real anger will come out." They laughed, no one entirely sure if he was serious or not, but walked into the boarding house, glad to be out of the snow. They found Jack waiting for them, sitting in a chair and tapping his foot anxiously. As soon as they passed through the door, he jumped up and began bombarding them with questions.

"Slow down there, Cowboy," Dollface said, silencing him. "I'm fine. The docta fixed me up real good. Hardly felt a thing. Hardly feel a thing right now actually."

"You sure? You're really alright," he repeated, very obviously relieved. "I promise, Doll, whatever you need help with you let me know. I'll help you up into your bed and to eat and to sell papes even and-"

"Jack," Kloppman said, grabbing his shoulder and stopping him. "She's doing just fine. Now please let's all go sit in the dining room. We need to have a bit of a chat." He turned on his heel, his mood very obviously changed, and walked into the dining room. They remained frozen in place.

"I thought he was joking about yelling at us," Dollface said, suddenly very worried.

"Apparently not," Crutchie said, gripping onto his crutch tighter.

"Come on guys, he ain't gonna yell," Jack said, trying to reassure them and himself. "He did that this morning."

"I said get in here!" Kloppman shouted from the other room, making them all jump. They gave each other worried looks before slowly walking into the other room. They took seats next to each other and looked up at Kloppman, preparing for the worst.

"Now I want to know what the hell happened yesterday that led you to Brooklyn instead of back here," he said very sternly.

"It's my fault," Dollface began. "I couldn't stand the thought of being stuck inside on a snow day and I convinced everyone to just goof around and play."

"It was me too," Crutchie jumped in. "Dollface and me both wanted to spend all day outside. Everyone else was real unsure about it though so don't blame them. Jack too. He wanted us all to come back here."

"Yeah but I didn't exactly try hard enough," Jack said. "I knew we wasn't supposed to be outside but didn't do much to stop it."

"So you three are the culprits," Kloppman said, crossing his arms. "Not very shocking but still you three are some of the oldest and I expected better from all of you. Crutchie and Dollface, I told you several times yesterday not to do precisely what you did. You gave me your word that you would come straight home and then completely disobeyed me. Jack, I've already told you that you are the leader but you have to do the right thing, whether or not its a fun decision. I can't stress enough how much you need to be a role model for these kids. All of you have to look out for them and lead by example. And breaking promises and disobeying me is not the right way, do I make myself clear?" They all nodded quietly.

"Now I'm giving everyone a 4 o'clock curfew for two weeks but I just don't think that will do it for you three," he continued. "Crutchie, you can't go with Racetrack to the races anymore. Dollface, hope you remember what Spot looks like because you won't be seeing him for two weeks. Jack, same goes for you and Katherine."

"Are you really grounding us?" Jack asked incredulously. "We's almost adults and you're tellin us when to be home and who we can and can't see?"

"You will abide by my rules or you will leave this boarding house," Kloppman said shortly. "Your choice." Jack responded by quietly sitting back in his chair.

"I'm sorry, sir," Crutchie said. "We won't disobey you again."

"And I promise to pay back every cent I owe you for the doctor," Dollface said quickly.

"No, I'll cova it," Jack said. "I gotta step up and take responsibility for my actions.

"It's my arm. I'll pay for it," Dollface insisted.

"I'm the one who made you get up on the fire escape so _I'll _pay for the docta," Jack said a bit aggressively.

"I'm the one who wasn't payin attention so _I'm _paying Kloppman back," Dollface replied, matching Jack's tone. Kloppman rolled his eyes as they continued their stubborn bickering and stood up.

"Come on, Crutchie," he said, handing the young man his crutch. "Let's see if we can't find something to eat and leave these two idiots to their fight." They left the room unnoticed as Dollface and Jack now stood nose to nose, nearly shouting about the subject.

* * *

**So that's the end! I hope you all enjoyed this little story. I always have random story ideas in my head so I'm sure there will be more.**


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